and he that is righteous, let him | be righteous still: and he that that would also fall, viz., the unfaith- be watchful and faithful, so as to be escape;" 1 Thess. v. 3. But it was ready to meet their Lord at his com- not expected the faithful Christians ing, they were to be involved in the would be thus overtaken. Hence same punishments with the unbeliev- Paul says to them, "But ye, brethren, ers. When their Lord should come, are not in darkness, that that day they would not find themselves pre- should overtake you as a thief. Ye pared, and could not therefore enjoy are all the children of light, and the the benefits of his coming. If, under children of the day: we are not of the the mistaken idea that their Lord night, nor of darkness. Though let delayed his coming, they were un- us not sleep, as do others; but let us faithful and disobedient, the Lord watch and be sober;" 1 Thess. v. would come when they looked not 4-6. The enemies of Jesus it was for him, and in an hour that they expected of course would be overwere not aware of, and cut them whelmed in the approaching judgasunder, and appoint them their por-ments; but there was another class tion with the hypocrites; Matt. xxiv. 48-51. If men neglect their present opportunities of improvement, they may afterward desire to gain the advantages they have lost, and not be able to gain them. This is fully shown by Solomon, in Prov. i. 24-31. Here we see, that, having neglected their opportunities of improvement, they afterwards saw the need of the blessings they had missed. Yet they could not gain them. "Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: for they hated knowledge, and did not choose to fear the Lord: they would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices;" 28-31. The punishment was unavoidable. They must "eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices." All this is confirmed by the experience of men in this world. It is taught us by observation every day. The same principle held good in the days of Christ. He repeatedly assured his disciples that his coming should take place in that generation. He should come as a thief in the night. When the people should say, "Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not : And the foolish saith unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready, went in with him to the marriage and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not ;" 6-12. That this had respect to the coming of Christ at the destruction of Jerusalem no one can doubt. And let it be observed, that the unwatchful disciples desired to repair the effects of their unwatchfulness, but they could not, because "he that is unjust, let him be unjust still : and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still." The same was true of is holy, let him be holy still. the open enemies of Jesus, as well as of his unfaithful disciples. While they were comparatively safe, eating and drinking, and making merry, they could not profess the name of Christ before men; but when thick troubles began to gather upon the Jewish church and state, and the divine favor began to be manifested in an unusual manner in favor of the persecuted religion of Jesus, then they turned their eyes to him, and cried, "Lord, Lord, open the gate of the gospel unto us." To these events the following words of Christ are applicable: "Whosoever, therefore, shall be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father, with the holy angels;" and Jesus assured them that this should take place during the natural lives of that generation; Mark viii. 38, compared with ix. 1. To illustrate this fact, the parable found in Luke xiii. 24-28 was spoken. "When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us, and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity." The purport of this advice is, strive to enter now into the acceptance and profession of my gospel; be not ashamed of me or my doctrine before this sinful generation. If you do not embrace the present opportunity, the time will come when you will regret it. Your nation will soon be overthrown with the most dreadful calamities; and then not a hair on the heads of my disciples shall be hurt. When that time comes, it will be too late for you to enter the 12 And behold, I come kingdom of God; the door will be shut; you will wish you had embraced past opportunities; but it will be of no avail; you will put forth pretences and claims to be considered my followers, but you will not have the test of true discipleship. At that critical time, there cannot be this change of character. Christians then will be Christians, and enemies must remain enemies the judgment cannot be averted. "He that is unjust will then be unjust still; he that is righteous will be righteous still; and he that is holy will be holy still." We have thus finished our examination of the words of the angel-revelator. There now follows the confirmation by the Lord Jesus himself of what the angel had said. CONFIRMATION BY THE ALPHA AND OMEGA. There seems to be a striking propriety that the Lord Jesus should give his confirmation of what the revelator had said, if the revelator had faithfully delivered his message. Look at the first verse of the book once more. "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John." This is the title of the book, and would well appear as the title-page. The revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ. He received it from his Father. He communicated it to John, by whom it was to be communicated unto the churches. When John had finished his communications, the query would naturally arise, has he done his work faithfully? To show that he had done so, Jesus gave his confirmation. quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13 I am Alpha, and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14 Blessed are they that do As if he had said, "I wish to confirm what John has written, especially on this point; and therefore I say, "BEHOLD, I COME QUICKLY." To give every man according as his work shall be. Who can fail here to recall to mind the words of Christ, spoken during his flesh? "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you, there be some standing here, which shall not taste of death till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom;" Matt. xvi. 27, 28. See, also, Mark viii. 38; ix. 1; Luke ix. 26, 27. Jesus said his reward was with him, to give every man according as his work shall be; e., at his coming, which he then said was to take place quickly. Is there not a close connection, then, between this passage and Rev. xx. 12, where we read that the dead, small and great, stood before God, and were judged every man according to his works? i. 13. I am Alpha and Omega.- And to make his confirmation the more solemn, he adds, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last." The phrase Alpha and Omega is explained by the words which immediately follow. Alpha is "the beginning," "the first;" Omega "the end," "the last." Alpha was the first and Omega the last letter of the Greek alphabet. 14. Blessed are they that do, &c. Mark, those only were promised the blessing who did his commandments. Not every one that said, Lord, Lord, should enter into the kingdom of heaven, but "he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven;" Matt. his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, vii. 21.¶ Have right to the tree of life. — They shall partake of the tree of life. "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God;" Rev. ii. 7. This figure of the tree of life is taken from the account of the tree of life in the garden of Eden, Gen. ii. 22—24. In describing the heavenly city, new Jerusalem, we have seen that John placed the tree of life in the midst of it; xxii. 2. To have right to the tree of life was to have right to the blessings of the new Jerusalem, or, in other words, of the gospel kingdom into which the faithful Christians were to enter. They were to "enter in through the gates into the city." How much is said in the New Testament about "entering into life," "in at the strait gate," "into the kingdom of heaven," "into the joy of the Lord," "into rest." These expressions all mean the same thing. There is a great variety of metaphor, but the same intent in all. The holy city represented the gospel covenant. Blessed were they who entered in. See the long note on Rev. ii. 7. 15. Without are dogs, and sorcerers, &c.-Those who did not enter through faith and obedience into the city, must, of course, remain without. The city was full of light; and therefore those without are said, by way of contrast, to be in "outer darkness;" i. e., they were outside of the kingdom. They had not passed through the gates into the city; Matt. viii. 12; xxii. 13; xxv. 30. Unbelievers and unfaithful professors were said to stand without; and after the troubles began, and it was too late for them to change their position, they knocked earnestly for admission; Luke xiii. 25. These en and whosoever loveth and mak-| bride say, Come. And let him eth a lie. 16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. 17 And the Spirit and the emies of Jesus, both secret and avowed, were represented by anything that was vile. The dog, being an unclean, furious animal, is conspicuous among the metaphors. Paul said, "Beware of dogs, beware of evil-workers, beware of the concision;" Phil. iii. 2. Compare with this verse, Rev. xxi. 8, 27. 16. To testify unto you these things. This was in the most direct strain of approval. He assumed the responsibility of what had been said. He was coming quickly to judge the nations; the good should enter into the kingdom and be happy; the opposite class should remain without and be punished. These were the great points that had been insisted on through the whole Apocalypse. Hence Jesus said, "I have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things, in the churches." I am the root, &c. And to show that he had authority to speak, he adds, "I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning-star." See Rev. v. 5, and the note there. that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely. 18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, iii. 6, 13, 22. The Spirit saith,— COME. And the Bride also, the Lamb's wife, saith to all men, COME; Rev. xxi. 9. Let the invitation be repeated. Let him who hath an ear to hear it, repeat it. Water of life. — Let him that is athirst come, for it is the water of life that is proffered. The gospel is a blessing; it meets the wants of man. When it is represented by bread, the hungry are invited; when by water, or milk, or wine, the thirsty are called; Isa. lv. 1. When by rest, the weary and heavy laden are entreated to come; Matt. xi. 2830. The gospel is presented in the most alluring manner; not as a luxury, but as a substantial necessity, without which men cannot live. One of the most expressive figures is that of the "water of life;" Jer. ii. 13; John iv. 10—15; Rev. vii. 17; xxi. 6. This treasure, so precious, is open to all. There is no restriction. "Whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." It would be impossible to give a more general, or more earnest, or more alluring invitation. There is sufficient for all men in the JESUS' INVITATION TO THE NEW JERU-new Jerusalem. There are not mere SALEM. ly a few drops of water, a scanty supply, but A RIVER, "a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb;" xxii. 1. THE APOCALYPSE GUARDED AGAINST 17. Whosoever will, let him come. All are invited to come. The invitation goes out to all, from the highest authority, -COME. The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. The Spirit had spoken to the churches through John, and what the Spirit said was of the utmost importance. Hence the oft-repeated 18. If any man shall add unto these injunction, "He that hath an ear to things. The prophecies of the book hear, let him hear what the Spirit saith of Revelation having thus been comunto the churches ;” ii. 7, 11, 17, 29; | pleted, Jesus, the Alpha and Omega, CORRUPTION. God shall add unto him the | book of this prophecy, God shall plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. verse 6, it is said that "The seven angels came out of the temple having the seven [last] plagues. See verses 7 and 8. In the next chapter [xvi.] we read of the manner in which these seven angels poured out the seven "last plagues ;" and a slight examination will show that they were all poured out upon the earth. "And I heard a great voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of GOD UPON THE EARTH.” The first vial was poured out upon the earth, meaning on the land; verse 2. The second was poured out upon the sea; verse 3. The third was poured out upon the rivers and fountains of water; verse 4. "The fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun;" verses 8, 9. "The fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast;" verses 10, 11. "The sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates;" verses 15, 16. was desirous to preserve them from being corrupted. The Christians possibly might be tempted to corrupt them, for some did corrupt the word of God; 2 Cor. ii. 17. Of course the avowed enemies of the church could not corrupt the sacred writings; for they, being known as enemies, would not have the power to give currency to their deceits. But it was the unstable professors who might do this, and so wrest the Scriptures to their own destruction; 2 Pet. iii. 16. And if they did so, either by adding to the book, or taking away from it, what fate awaited them? Ans. They would have their portion with the hypocrites, for they would lose their part in the holy city, and from all the blessings written in the book, and there would be added to them the plagues that are written in the book. What are the plagues that are written in this book? Have we not shown that they are not to be referred to the immortal state? See them spoken of," And the seventh angel poured out ix. 20, and compare with the preceding part of the chapter. See, also, xi. 6, where it is said the two witnesses have power to smite the earth with the plagues. See, again, xvi. 9. If the reader will peruse the whole of the sixteenth chapter, particularly the first verse, he will see that these plagues were poured out "upon the earth." Again, see xviii. 4, 8, where we are told, that "her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire; for strong is the Lord God, who judgeth her." Were not these plagues on the earth? But let us look once more. In xv. 1 we read, "And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven LAST plagues; for in them is FILLED UP the wrath of God." Again, in his vial into the air;" verses 17-21. These were the seven angels having the seven last plagues, and this was the manner in which the seven last plagues were poured out. They embraced all the judgments that were to be inflicted on the persecutors of Christianity. If any other plagues are denounced in the Apocalypse, which remain yet to be fulfilled, these were not the last. But they are expressly said to be the last, meaning the last plagues of the Apocalypse, and they were all poured on the earth. If any judgments denounced in that book yet remain to be fulfilled in the future state, then the revelator made an error when he said the plagues he described were the seven last plagues. Now when it is said, "If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto |
